Part 27 (1/2)
I spread my fingers apart and flicked my own c.l.i.t. ”Will it be more extreme than what we did at the 624 Gallery?”
”Perhaps not, though having the audience of a piece of performance art see your bare a.s.s is one thing. It's a bit different to have it all over the Internet. So you should think it over before you agree.”
”Hey, who says it's my a.s.s that'll be bare in the video? You're the s.e.x symbol.”
”True.” He stood, pulling me up until I was standing, too, my hand still working in my panties. ”Hands behind your head.”
He circled behind me and then reached around so that his hand replaced mine, and then continued talking to me as his fingers ran in slick circles over my c.l.i.t. ”What I haven't told anyone yet is that this actually plays perfectly into my plans for the theme of the show.”
I could only make a general sound of agreement as I tried to relax into his expert touch. But then he seemed to stop talking. ”And that theme is?”
”Well, I was thinking I'd explain it to the whole company in the morning at rehearsal.” He lightened his touch as I tightened, nearing my peak.
”Does that mean you're not going to tell me now?”
”How about I give you a choice? Which would you rather have delayed, your o.r.g.a.s.m, or finding out about the show? You can have one now and one tomorrow.”
”Oh, you're evil. Ah, f.u.c.k.” I was too close now and didn't have the willpower to stop. ”Make me come, please, James? Please, oh, G.o.d.”
”Gladly, sweetness, gladly.” He brought me off with one hand over my mouth, stifling my screams, while the other hand milked every last s.h.i.+ver of pleasure from my p.u.s.s.y he could wring, four or five o.r.g.a.s.ms in a row, until I was limp against him and gasping.
”One more choice for you,” he murmured, as he s.h.i.+fted us to the edge of the bed. ”Shall I come in your mouth tonight or your c.u.n.t?”
”My... c.u.n.t.” I blushed intensely, trying to remember if I'd ever said the word out loud. When would I have had the chance? But it was easy to blurt out when I was this soaked in s.e.x already. James wasted no time getting inside me, but once there, he slowly inserted himself with long, soothing strokes, in no hurry at all.
The next morning he made good on his promise to explain what the show was about, although he and Alicia ran us through the number we'd been working on for an hour first. Then he gathered all the dancers in the VIP tables around the runway of the stage while he sat on the edge, his feet hanging down. He was in his dancing clothes, but wearing an Oxford s.h.i.+rt over them, unb.u.t.toned like a jacket.
”Thank you for being so patient with the artistic process,” he began. ”The idea for this show struck me quite suddenly and putting all the pieces together has been an interesting challenge. Since the record company wants to release a greatest hits collection, I was looking for some way to incorporate several songs from the past into a single storyline, and add one or two new songs. As it turns out, what I've come up with could only be performed here in Las Vegas.”
”Does it have a burlesque theme?” Annika asked brightly.
”No, but good thought. It has a sort of futuristic bondage theme, hence the t.i.tle, which is being revealed in the marketing campaign later this week: Bonded to the Black. The plot is simple enough. Dystopian future ruled by a master computer, which has divided people into the haves and have-nots. n.o.bles and serfs, or masters and slaves, if you will. Our two princ.i.p.als find each other. If the rigging can be done the way I want, it may end with the two of us literally flying off together. When they get together, she is elevated from mindless drudgery while he is liberated from his role as a cog in the machine.”
”Kind of like The Matrix?” asked Pascual.
James thought a moment. ”Perhaps? I was actually inspired by a Kurt Vonnegut story. The production will have a bit of a Matrix-y appearance though, since we'll be using a modern fetishwear look to key the metaphor of bondage. The underlying message is about consent and mutual respect being empowering.”
Alicia raised her hand. ”You mean 'no means no'?”
”And 'yes means yes,' ” James said. ”Come to think of it, that might end up in the chorus of the finale. And on T-s.h.i.+rts. And on that note, if you'll excuse me, now that the band is awake, I had better go and work with them.”
He slipped away, while Alicia made an announcement about costume fittings and hairdresser appointments for that afternoon. After lunch we had to clear the stage for a while as some work that couldn't be done at night had to happen on the sets, and the guitar player from the band came by with a tape for Alicia of all seventeen songs that would be in the production. Only six would have the full complement of dancers, including the opening overture and the finale, and two others would have a small ensemble of me, Annika, Ben, Pascual-and James.
I had my costume fitting early in the afternoon and then was sitting around listening to the tape with some of the others when I got another text from Becky.
Another video. This one's worse. Or better. Depending on how you look at it.
I excused myself from the group. From a stall in the women's room I texted James to let him know, and then I put my headphones in and texted Becky back. A few minutes later I was watching a video.
She was right. This one wasn't as ”bad” in that there was no fake rape. No. It was a shaky, grainy cell phone video taken at what was clearly a Las Vegas wedding chapel. Ferrara holding the phone and pointing it at herself as she primped her miniature veil and mugged for the camera, then pointing it quickly at her tall, blond groom.
At a glance it sure looked like James. But the camera never focused on his face except as it tried to capture the actual kiss after the vows, and then it was Ferrara's face we could make out, not his.
The entire ceremony couldn't have been more than five minutes long, and this was an edit of it.
A text came from James. Have you seen it?
I texted back. Yes. It's of Ferrara and someone who looks a lot like you getting married in a Vegas wedding chapel.
James's sarcasm came through, even in a text: Gee, I wonder where she would find someone who looked just like me for her charade? Tell Ben and Pascual I need to meet with you all. I'll be there shortly.
Of course. I should have thought of Ben and Pascual myself!
I went back into the green room and found Annika first. For half a second I couldn't remember which name I was supposed to use for James. Not Jules... What was his dancer nickname? Jasper. Right. ”Jasper wants a meeting with the small ensemble. Are Pascual and Ben here?”
She looked around. ”I just saw Ben go into the men's room. Pascual might be outside the door?”
”I'll get Ben if you look for Pascual.”
”Okay.”
I caught Ben coming out of the restroom and led him back to the green room. Annika had Pascual in tow. We sat down together. My plan of having it look like it was about discussing the small ensemble pieces worked perfectly. Annika had no idea there was anything wrong, so she chatted away, keeping the other two fully engaged so they had no chance to notice I was a little distracted.
When James came sweeping in, the first thing he did was kiss me on the cheek. Then he looked around at our little group. ”I'll talk to the boys first,” he said, ”but come with me in the car. Mult.i.tasking is my life.”
If the two of them found this in any way odd, they didn't let on. I peeked out the side door as they got into the car. Stefan was driving one of the larger limos today.
Well, that would be an interesting ride, I was sure. If one of them was guilty, he certainly couldn't run away easily. And the car was probably a lot harder to bug or eavesdrop on than a room like this one.
When James hadn't returned by the time we wrapped for the evening, I went back to the hotel in the van with the rest of the crew. Upstairs, Ty made a nightly check of our rooms to be sure no new surveillance devices had appeared. After he left, I checked my e-mail and then saw I had a video chat request from Becky.
I joined the video chat to find Becky, Paulina, and Michel already in mid-chat.
”Karina!” Becky exclaimed. ”Oh my goodness, this is so exciting!”
”Which thing is so exciting, Becks? Fill me in.”
”Okay, so I'm all set to come out there and interview people for my thesis, right? And then Paul and Misha told me they were talking with him about spreading these videos around, and so I'm going to do these promo videos, too, while I'm there. I'm flying in tomorrow.”
It took me a moment to realize that she wasn't talking about the ravishment-or whatever it would be-video that James and I were planning to make. ”Fantastic! I've really missed you, Becks. And there's so much going on here.” So much that I haven't been able to tell you over the phone or e-mail, that is.
”And we're going to come too, Karina, for the press conference and party,” Paulina said.
”Is Las Vegas as odd as it is portrayed in movies?” Michel wanted to know.
”Odder,” I said. ”This place is hard to believe. I can't wait to see you all. It'll be great to have some friends here!”